A Guide to Teaching Degree Requirements

Individuals whose career goal is to become a teacher need to know teaching degree needs for their region and the type of teacher they want to become. In order to teach any level of public school in all 50 states, a Bachelors of Education and a certification program must be completed. Certification and licensing needs vary from region to region, so before deciding on any type of certification program check with your state board of education to find out the needs for your area. Teaching private school is a bit different, there are no certification needs but usually a minimum of a bachelors degree is needed.

The classes and minor you will choose when in college will vary depending on the grade level you wish to teach. For example, if your goal is to teach kindergarten you will need to study early education and child psychology related to kindergarten age students. For grades 1 and 2 there will be similar classes needed because these children are also quite young and fairly new to the school experience. To teach grades 3 to 5 you might want to find a specialty such as math, science or art for example, as these students often have different teachers for different subjects to prepare them for middle school and high school.

Teaching middle school also needs a bachelors degree. When it comes to choosing your minor, you will want to focus on something that deals with middle school education. Middle school, formerly known as junior high, is grades 6 through 8. The goal of middle school is to prepare students for the rigors of high school. In middle school, students have a different teacher for each subject, so choosing a subject to specialize in is necessary. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there is a particular need for teachers in the subjects of math, science and foreign language.

High school teachers must also have a bachelors degree, an area of specialization and be certified to teach in their area. While these are minimum teaching degree needs, many teachers go on to continue their education in their free time, sometimes through distance learning. Obtaining a master’s degree can lead to a higher salary and opportunities for advancement in the school system. If you are interested in teaching at a college level, you will usually need no less than a master’s degree to be considered as a qualified applicant.

A Guide to Teaching Degree Requirements was last modified: April 27th, 2016 by Peter Larsen